And I know a lot of people (friends and clients included) that are either in or want to go into the wellness industry in some way!! The industry was worth an estimated $4.2 trillion in 2017 and actually grew 12.8% in the last two years!! That is loads!! And it is probably more in 2019! Who wouldn’t want a piece of the action?!

I mean I wanted a piece of that action!! After an unfulfilling time in events, almost ten years to be precise, I left the corporate world and opted for something a bit more holistic. I mean the love of all things wellness for me was kind of engrained, my family set up one of the first wellness hotels back in the 70s, my Mum introduced us to alternative healing practices before we could walk (everything from reiki to iridology and kinesiology), I was into crystals and meditation before it was deemed ‘cool’. I kid you not I was the kid who at 8 years old could tell you the healing powers of each crystal presented to me. So back to my story of leaving the corporate world… I handed in my resignation with no idea of what I wanted to do! After a few months reflection I decided to retrain as a personal trainer, I worked in this field for number of years before realising that what people were really coming to me and working on in their sessions was their mindset. It was my lightbulb moment. I finally felt like I had figured out what I really wanted to do and in the way that lights you up and makes you feel passionate.

Why do other people want a piece of this action? Health and wellness is something that is a lot more main stream now than it once was. Everyone can access healthy recipes, how to stretch out your hamstring, yoga videos, motivational talks and loads more at the click of a button!! In addition, things that were once considered taboo like mental health, pre and post natal health not only physically but mentally, menstrual cycles, to name a few, are now being openly spoken about. You don’t need to be a professional to have access to this information and that is empowering for those who want to live healthier and more balanced lives!!

I recently read that the world’s 3.2 billion work force is increasingly unwell! There were some pretty scary statistics on the Global Wellness Institute website! The most terrifying of them being that 52% of adults are considered overweight or obese, 76% are struggling or suffering with their physical wellbeing and 38% suffer from excessive pressure on the job. No wonder we are looking for ways to get healthy, destress and alleviate our suffering!!

Thankfully there seems to have been a shift in the way we treat lifestyle dis-eases including stress, anxiety, obesity, diabetes, etc. We have started to move away from the here’s a ‘band aid’ approach to understanding and treating the root cause of these ailments.

Time and time again I work with young and old clients alike, who come back to the same thing, wanting to help other people. Altruism has climbed up our list of priorities in the careers/ industry we want to work in and I feel like that you can’t get a more altruistic focused industry than wellness. Why do we want to do something altruistic? Because as one writer on Psychology Today put it, we are hard wired to seek out and feel rewarded by doing work that matters and having a connection with others.

If you have or are considering starting a wellness business but come up against that age old nemesis, self doubt then know this, it has never been easier to start a business than it is now. You might feel like everyone is going into this field but let’s face it, there is enough room for everyone and we are all concentrating on our own individual niche. Just because I am in the wellness industry doesn’t mean I know everything about wellness, just because you are a coach doesn’t mean you know everything there is about coaching, just because you are a yoga teacher doesn’t mean that you don’t go to yoga classes… you get the picture! Plus this is one of the first industries that is a lot more open to collaborations, sharing knowledge and growing together, at least this has been my experience!

With 200,000 more businesses started in 2017 alone it seems that the entrepreneurial trend is set to continue. 60% of the UK business population are sole traders! And why not?! You get to do something that you feel passionate about, that is yours, that is aligned with your values and morales, that you can manage your time and your schedule. The internet allows us to create a business with a click, buy a domain, create a website, do our tax returns, connect with our target audience and all from the comfort of our own homes (if that is what we want).

So if your thinking about building your business around something you feel passionate about, that has a positive impact and legacy and becoming a ‘wellprenuer’ what are you waiting for? What is stopping you? I would love to hear your stories and journeys, get in touch if you want to share them.